Sacrifice of a Hero
by Capt. Cow
Summary: One of the heroes gives his life for another, how do you deal with that?


Sacrifice of a hero  
  
Disclaimer- I do not own Hogans heroes. Does that surprise anyone?  
  
Summary- What do you do when someone dies for you?- Find out.  
  
Other Stuff- I dunno why I'm writing this, I just thought of it. Sorry if it's bad. ~This means speaking German~  
  
Rating- PG-13, for swearing and death.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Sgt. Andrew Carter sat, motionless at the table. He was staring at his hands, he had been for at least three hours.  
  
He was ignoring his friend's attempts to cheer him up, it was pretty hard to believe everything was going to be ok when they sounded almost as depressed and sad as he felt.  
  
But Carter knew they couldn't feel as depressed and sad as he felt. Because it wasn't their fault.  
  
It was his. If he hadn't been in the wrong place at the wrong time, hadn't been so damn stupid! His commander would still be alive.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Colonel Robert E. Hogan had a bad feeling about the mission that London had sent them. He was pretty sure it was nothing. It was an easy mission right? Go in blow up the bridge, come back. It was much easier then some of the missions they had done.  
  
Hogan continued to creep through the bush with the rest of the team following. He held up his hand for a stop, what was that noise?  
  
Damn! That was a patrol. Hogan began to reverse creep, hearing the patrol get closer he dropped to his hands and knees. The rest of the group was reversing too.  
  
The Gestapo guy was now poking the but end of his gun into the bushes where they had been 20 seconds ago.  
  
Phew, he had stopped now. The heroes stopped moving.  
  
~ "The tip we received was wrong, no one is coming to blow up the brige tonight. Lets go home I'm cold"~ One of the Gestapo guys, said to another.  
  
~ "No, Major Hochsetter would want us to guard the bridge."~  
  
They had moved off now, the heroes couldn't hear the rest of the conversation. They held a whispered council of war in the bushes.  
  
"I say we keep going." Hogan said, they had a job to do. Some boring old Gestapo patrol wasn't gonna stand in the way.  
  
The other four stared at him incredulously,  
  
"Are you barmy sir? There's a Gestapo patrol out there, waiting for us!" Newkirk had never been one for subtlety.  
  
"That bridge is to important to leave standing, tomorrow the Germans are transporting troops to the front on it. If the bridge isn't there we make them take an extra week to get to the front! We blow it" He spoke with such firmness at the end that the others knew it was foolish to argue. "But," Hogan continued, "because it is so dangerous, you don't have to keep going. I can do this by myself if you guys want to go back to base."  
  
"No way sir, we do this together" Kinch said as soon as Hogan finished talking.  
  
Newkirk and Carter nodded their agreement.  
  
They set off towards the bridge.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Carter frowned, why hadn't he said he wouldn't come? Had his seeming bravery in that bush killed someone? If he hadn't been there would the colonel still be alive? Probably he decided.  
  
That made it even worse.  
  
Carter sank his head further down on the table with a moan.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
They had arrived at the bridge and managed to set the charges, without being seen. Now all they had to do was get out of there.  
  
That proved to be easier said than done.  
  
As the team were creeping away from the bridge a Gestapo man patrolling the bridge happened to see them.  
  
~ "Halt"~ He cried, hipping out his rifle and beginning to fire.  
  
"Run for it" bellowed Hogan, and the team split up, running in all different directions.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Newkirk looked over at Carter, he had moved, that was one thing. But he had sunk lower onto the table. That was probably a bad thing.  
  
Newkirk sighed. Why was Carter banging himself over the head with this? It was his fault not Carters. If he hadn't been caught then that stupid rescue attempt wouldn't have been made.  
  
Newkirk shook his head, to try and shake the memory of Hogan's cold, very dead body. They had given him a decent burial, just outside camp.  
  
They shouldn't have had to bury him. He should still be with them. It wasn't fair.  
  
Damn Hochsetter and his goons. It was their fault. And if Newkirk ever got close enough to Hochsetter, no matter what happened to him he was gonna kill the.  
  
Kinch's coughing interrupted his troubled thoughts.  
  
"What's up Kinch?" Newkirk asked not really interested.  
  
"We have to come up with a way to tell Klink and Schultz." Kinch sounded troubled. He knew this was the last thing Newkirk wanted to hear, but he couldn't talk to Carter about it. The poor kid was so depressed. LeBeau was no where to be found.  
  
"We do." It took some effort, but Newkirk knew it was hard, probably harder for Kinch at the moment. He was the one who had to take over and run the operation. He was the Colonels best friend.  
  
"I have an idea, but I need your help."  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Newkirk ran as fast as he could away from the patrol. But he wasn't quick enough. One of them tackled him from behind, and knocked him over.  
  
He turned around to have a gun pointed straight at his head.  
  
"Don't move" the Gestapo goon said in heavily accented English, "or you die."  
  
Newkirk sighed. What had he gotten himself into this time?  
  
Carter was in the bushes nearby, watching Newkirk and the Gestapo man. What could he do? He had to think of something.  
  
Maybe he could distract the Gestapo man? Give Newkirk the chance to escape? But how?  
  
Carter fished around in his pocket, he had a gun. The Gestapo man was to close to Newkirk he couldn't shoot him, but he could shoot nearby, and distract the guy. He hope Newkirk would get out of there, quickly.  
  
Hogan sat nearby too, he had a plan, to get Newkirk out of there. It was his fault for insisting on the mission. He had a duty to save his man. Hogan was getting ready to jump and and get the Gestapo mans attention when he heard a gun shot.  
  
What the?  
  
Hitting the ground hard Hogan looked around, no Gestapo men in sight. Where had the shot come from?  
  
He watched as the Gestapo man guarding Newkirk moved away, his gun still pointed at Newkirk, and searched some nearby bushes. Without warning Carter leapt out and knocked him over, giving Newkirk the chance to escape.  
  
Seixing his chance Newkirk leapt up and dived in to the bushes.Staying down he saw Colonel Hogan nearby and was on his way to sit next to him when Hogan jumped up, cried out "Carter LOOK OUT" and dived from the bushes.  
  
A shot was fired, and then there was an eerie silence.  
  
Chancing it, Newkirk stuck his head up out of the bushes and took the scene in. Hogan was on the ground, Carter was next to him. The Gestapo man was standing staring, obviously to confused about where Hogan had come from to be able to think coherently.  
  
But he was still armed, and Carter was too shocked to do anything. It was up to Newkirk.  
  
He grabbed his gun, while the Gestapo man had relieved him of one Newkirk always carried a spare in his sock.  
  
And shot the man who had held him captive.  
  
There was a loud thud as the body hit the ground.  
  
"Colonel, Carter, every Gestapo man from here to Berlin will be here soon. Lets go find the others."  
  
Carter sat up and nodded, but Colonel Hogan didn't move.  
  
"Colonel Hogan?" nothing, "Colonel Hogan?"  
  
This wasn't good, c'mon Colonel, say something, Carter thought desperately.  
  
"Go.. without .. me.." Hogan didn't move, and he spoke in a soft, gravely voice. A voice that Newkirk had only ever heard dying people use.  
  
"No way colonel, you're coming back with us. We have a football game tomorrow." Carter was looking terrified beyond belief. His voice was almost breaking as he spoke.  
  
Colonel Hogan lay still, the bullet wound in his chest hurt more then he hd thought was physically possible, the pain was overwhelming. Just let me sleep, he thought gazing at the two men looking over him.  
  
Why are they still here? Don't they know an order when they hear it?  
  
"Go.., their coming." Hogan knew they didn't want to leave him here, but he couldn't let the Gestapo get them. Visions of his family and friends were flashing through his mind. His mother, father, Nic, Mike, James, Elsie, their kids. Playing football as a little boy, the first time he ever flew, getting shot down. Memories shot through his head.  
  
He couldn't see anything now, he was slowly fading, the pain was fading too. So this was dying huh? Maybe it wasn't so bad after all.  
  
Newkirk and Carter sat, devastated as Hogan's body slumped to the ground. He was gone. What could they do without him. Carter sat and stared, but Newkirk was trying to think what to do. The Gestapo would be here soon.  
  
They had to move, but they couldn't just leave Hogan here. No way. He would have to come too.  
  
"Carter, we have to carry him out of here, and now, before the Gestapo come. C'mon, lets get back to the stump."  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Kinch sighed as he made his way to the commandant's office. He had barely had time to grieve his friend. This was probably the worst day in his life, his friend had died, and he hadn't been able to do anything to help. The memory of Newkirk and Carter bringing his body to the stump swam before his eyes, Newkirk had looked absolutely devastated and Carter was even worse. He had shrunk into a shell,that no one seemed to be able to penetrate.  
  
Kinch was seriously hoping that the plan he and Newkirk had come up with was good enough, that Hogan had died in a tunnel cave in. He just hoped the Klink didn't ask for a body.  
  
Knocking on the door, Kinch heard Klink's voice call him in.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Colonel Hogan was the best commanding officer a guy could have" they had made a makeshift grave and buried him, now Kinch was giving the eulogy. All Carter could think about was the shot that had taken Hogan's life.  
  
He hadn't seen it coming, he was on his way to the bushes, the Gestapo man had somehow gotten up, and fired, but it hadn't hit Carter. All he could remember was the call, the push and the shot.  
  
Is fault, it was all his fault.  
  
"Colonel Hogan loved to fly, and to command."  
  
If he wasn't here the Colonel would still be alive.  
  
"Colonel Hogan will be greatly missed."  
  
His fault, it was his fault.  
  
The eulogy finished Carter made his way woodenly inside and went to sit at the table, he began to stare at his hands.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Carter had finally fallen asleep at the table, it was probably better that he sleep, decided LeBeau as he covered Carter up. Carter had to much guilt weighing down on him. It wasn't his fault.  
  
LeBeau hoped that when he woke up, Carter would be more responsive to his friends efforts to help him. He needed someone to help him through it, but the person who was best at it wasn't here anymore.  
  
LeBeau still couldn't believe it. He knew that in war, people died, it just got harder and harder to deal with.  
  
He went to find Newkirk, he needed to hit something and maybe Newkirk would be interested in helping him find out who set them up.  
  
That person was in deep, deep trouble.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Carter tossed and turned in his sleep, reliving the awful memory. Suddenly his sleep was intruded upon by Colonel Hogan.  
  
"Listen Carter, this is a dream. But I have to tell you to stop feeling guilty. The team needs you, you still have a job to do. It wasn't your fault that I died. I made the decision. I need you to believe that. Without you, Newkirk would be dead or being interrogated. You have to remember that. Write and tell my parents I love them."  
  
Carter woke with a start, Colonel Hogan, in his dream?  
  
Maybe the colonel was right. He had to stop being guilty. He would never forget the colonel's memory, he would respect it. But he wouldn't feel guilty. He had a job to do, and a letter to write.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
What do you think? Did I give him a decent send off? -Capt.Cow 


End file.
